Delicate Edge
by Vivian Caidin
Summary: A continuation of Door of Time. What happens when Jack is cloned by the Asgard? Daniel's first feelers back into the world of Immortals.
1. Prologue

TITLE: Delicate Edge

DISCLAIMER: Glassner and Wright created Stargate SG1. Davis/Panzer/Widen created Highlander. Knauf created Carnivále. Bellisario/McGill created NCIS. Grant/Naylor created Red Dwarf. Misfits of Science was created by James D. Parriott. Joss Whedon created Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Historical figures are from their respective timeframe.

PAIRING: None thus far.

RATING: T for language and content.

SPOILERS: Stargate SG1 up to Fragile Balance in season 7. Highlander is after Highlander Endgame, disregards Highlander the Source. Carnivále is after the series. NCIS is not mentioned other than the one character. Historical figure reference: Agamemnon was a general from the Trojan War; the Templar Knights were during the Crusades.

Summary: A continuation of Door of Time. What happens when Jack is cloned by the Asgard?

Prologue

… Back to Normal… Sorta…

It had taken Daniel nearly the full two week leave of absence after the mission to P3X-576 to regain all of his memories. During that time, SG1 had stood vigil, watching over him like the adopted family they had become.

He had told them that they did not have to stay, but the group as a whole had said that was what friends were for.

They had watched as he went through mood swings of sadness, happiness, rage and pain. They always tried to help him through the most painful times as much as he allowed them. A lot of times he would push them away, and sometimes he even lashed out at them. But they stuck by him.

This was different than the earlier memory loss when he had been dead for a year, in that his personality was now markedly different than the recent past.

He was quieter now and less likely to babble when excited. He had to consciously suppress the English accent otherwise, tidbits of 'Mother English' showed through.

There were a few new quirks to his personality as well: he was more impatient, he was quicker to anger now, and he was more willing to fight, fiercely if needed.

He was obviously no longer a pacifist. It seemed that he was no longer content when idle. He also seemed to constantly crave movement, as though he could not sit still for long periods of time.

That Friday, the group had parted company.

Teal'c went back to the SGC, through the 'gate, to visit Bra'tac and find out how the Jaffa rebellion was going on Dakarta.

Sam had enjoyed a rare weekend at home.

Jack stayed with Daniel the whole day on Friday. He asked Daniel all kinds of questions about the past and his role in it.

Daniel had told him a lot of what had happened to him. He was surprised that he even told the mortal about his first wife and what had happened to her. He also told Jack about what that had led him to.

After sharing a few beers, Jack had also gone home for the weekend.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

… Back to the Grind …

That Monday, Daniel was back to 'normal' and back to work bright and early.

He had several projects that he wanted to get a handle on, and as he worked on those projects he remembered some good friends that he had met through the years. He promised himself that he would touch base with some of those OLD friends.

Using the now hated computer, Daniel touched base with one contact and asked for help in locating the one who could find any Immortal, anywhere. He received the e-mail address to Benny Crimins and sent him a request for contact information on a few of the old crew.

He looked over at the wall near the door to his office and noticed the coffee pot and frowned. Grabbing the trash can, he moved over to that small table and threw the coffee pot, coffee bags, and filters into the trash.

Then, he turned and noticed one of the projects on a side table. The side table was set up for things that he had been unable to translate previously. The project had familiar, ancient writing on it.

Eyebrows lifted, Daniel moved to the table and looked at the slab of stone, staring at the carvings on it.

"Wow!" he said to himself as he read the writing. It was the writing of his people, his tribe, and he knew exactly what it said. 

He lifted the slab from the side table and brought it over to the central table. Gently setting the small slab down, he grabbed a pen and paper to begin working.

Daniel began translating the Celtiberian cuneiform into English with a fond smile on his face.

As he was trying to concentrate, he was distracted by two Airmen loitering outside his normally open door.

"Did you hear about the security breach?" that was Airman Bosworth's voice.

"Yeah, what's going on?" and that was Airman Wells.

"I heard it was a kid claimin' that he was Colonel O'Neill," Bosworth again. His voice was full of humor as he relayed gossip from the base.

"No, really?" Wells snorted.

"Dale said he asked him to get him some coffee," Bosworth laughed.

"That is crazy," Wells scoffed then continued, "Do ya know where they're holding him?"

"On 16, I know that's for sure," Bosworth said as he began to move further down the hall.

"To be a fly on that wall," Wells laughed once more as the pair disappeared down the corridor.

As the pair left his doorway, Daniel tried to continue working. But, the idea of someone pretending to be Jack O'Neill distracted him enough that he knew he would get no more work done as long as his curiosity continued to bug him.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

…The Base, Infiltrated…

The Immortal left his office and headed to the elevators, his curiosity was piqued enough that he had to find out what was going on.

Daniel nodded to Sergeant James as they reached one another in the cross-section of the hallway and let the man go ahead of him. The sergeant carried a hot mug as he headed toward the holding room.

As he reached the holding room that the sergeant entered, Daniel stopped just outside the door. 

"Finally!" he heard a young voice exclaim as James entered the room.

Daniel smirked when he heard, "Hot chocolate? Are you kidding?"

He heard a serious Sam ask, "Where did you get this?"

The young voice replied in an irate tone, "I didn't… I didn't get it anywhere. Its mine."

"Because you're Colonel O'Neill," he heard Sam's disbelief.

"Exactly," the young voice said, "Last night I ate Chinese take out, had a beer then went to bed. I woke up like this. Get Fraser to run some tests, cure me and make me big again."

"Is this the security breach?" Daniel asked as he entered the room with a smirk on his face.

"Daniel, will you please tell them who I am?" the kid asked in exasperation.

Daniel looked at the young man for a long moment, locked eyes with him even. They were Jack's eyes staring back at him from a young face. He smirked as his playful side twinkled his hazel eyes, "Okay… who are you?" 'Why the hell is Jack a kid?' he thought to himself.

"This young man," the General indicated the young Jack, "is claiming to be Colonel O'Neill."

"Is this a joke," Daniel continued his charade, "What's goin' on?"

"Daniel!" Jack exclaimed in frustration, he knew Daniel was messing with him, he could tell by the stupid twinkle.

"Sounds like him," Daniel said with a nod, "at least the loud part."

"Ya want proof?" Jack snapped, "Okay… Carter, you were a host for the Tok'ra Jolinar before it died to save your life after the ashrak. Daniel… you were ascended until they kicked your sorry ass out of the glowing squid club."

By this time, Teal'c had entered the room, "Teal'c, you just came back from Dakarta. How's Bratack?"

Teal'c looked at the young man for a long moment before he turned to Hammond, "How has this child come across such knowledge?"

Sam shook her head silently in disbelief.

Daniel looked at the de-aged Jack O'Neill in curiosity.

"Cause it's me!" Jack exclaimed as he fought with the oversized clothes that he wore. 

…Mommy and Daddy Have to Talk…

Hammond left the holding room with the three adult members of SG1.

"How could a boy come across our classified information?" the General asked all three as he stopped in the hall a short distance away from the closed door.

"It could be him, sir," Sam said thoughtfully.

"The resemblance is remarkable," Daniel noted quietly.

"That boy can't be more than 15," Hammond said, "How is it possible for Colonel O'Neill to regress more than 30 years overnight?"

"There have been stranger occurrences," Daniel observed.

"Name one," Hammond responded.

"Well, I could mention that time in 16-th Century Bordeaux when it rained herring," Daniel began, "But instead I'll just say that there was the time that Jack got really, really old." He looked at the others then said, "Or that time we all swapped bodies…" 

"I'm going to have Dr. Fraser perform a full physical," Hammond said as they stopped in the hall. "We'll meet in the briefing room after she finishes her examination."


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

…Going Back to Work…

After the briefing, Daniel went back to his office and tried to work on one of his numerous projects. He immersed himself in the translation.

Jack looked around the door jamb and noticed that Daniel was by himself, engrossed in his work. He entered the room and sat down in his usual chair after making sure that Daniel was alone.

"What is it, Jack?" Daniel said even though his back was turned to the young man.

"What?" Jack protested, "Can't I visit you whenever I want to talk to my friend?"

Daniel scoffed as he turned to look at Jack, "You usually join me in here to avoid Carter when she goes scientist on you, or to avoid getting any actual work done."

A long stretch of silence passed between them as Jack decided not to respond. The sounds of Daniel puttering around in his office were comfortable to Jack and he was almost asleep when he realized that there was something he wanted to know.

"How'd you know it was me and not some imposter?" Jack asked quietly as he lifted his head from the table and asked the archaeologist.

Daniel turned hazel eyes on the young man and gave a small, secretive smile. "The mannerisms are the same. The way you speak, the stance, how can it **not** be you?" Daniel looked at Jack for a long moment, "Mostly, I recognized you by your eyes… no child has seen the amount of death and destruction that you have seen and had that look you get in your eyes."

"Carter and Teal'c are enjoying this way too much," Jack pouted, elbows on the table, as he rested his chin on his folded hands.

"Sam probably thinks you're a cute kid, and Teal'c probably assesses that this body is better than the other one." Daniel observed as he rubbed a hand over his face and continued translating text that had previously gone untranslated because the Daniel Jackson of before could not understand it. Written in Celtiberian, it was the language of his tribe, long dead, it had similar symbols to Nordic runes but closer to cuneiform.

"That's about right," Jack agreed as he watched Daniel pour over some rock. "What's that?" he finally asked with interest.

Hazel eyes looked up in concern, "You're asking about my so called rocks?"

Jack shrugged, "I got nothing else better to do for the foreseeable future. Can't go on missions, can't go off world, can't go home."

Daniel sighed, "I'm looking at something I wasn't able to translate before."

"Before?" Jack looked at him, and then realization dawned, "Oh, before you got your memories back and realized you were a really old guy."

Daniel looked at the teen for a long moment with a frown on his face. "Yeah," he snapped, "before I realized I was a freakin' old guy."

Jack smiled in that delighted way he had when he enjoyed messing with his friends.

Realization finally sunk in, as Daniel glared at the teenager. Sitting with him in his office was a de-aged Jack O'Neill. No matter what the outcome, Daniel would help him.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

…Investigation…

SG1 had finally got permission from General Hammond to investigate what had happened to Jack.

Mid week found the whole team headed to Jack's house to look for clues.

Jack followed Sam and Daniel into his living room while Teal'c investigated in the kitchen.

"Well," Daniel said as he looked around at the slovenly contents of the living room. "Some things never change."

"I didn't expect to have any visitors," Jack shrugged in response.

"We can send everything to the lab," Sam said as she set the box of stale, half eaten cartons of Chinese food on the coffee table.

"Well, if it was in the lo mein, I'm never ordering from there again," Jack joked as he looked around the room and frowned. 'How are we gonna fix this?' he wondered to himself.

"What's the last thing you remember, Jack?" Daniel asked as he looked around.

"Being older," was the teen's response.

Teal'c, who came to the doorway from the kitchen and said, "Are you conducting an experiment, O'Neill?"

Jack looked over to see Teal'c with a Tupperware container of moldy cheese in his hands.

"Hey," Jack protested as he rescued the limburger, "scrape off the green bits and it's still good." He went to put the pungent cheese back into the refrigerator.

He came back from the kitchen with a bottle of beer, which Sam took from him.

"Hey!" he protested loudly.

Daniel smiled as he realized that Jack reminded him of someone from his past. That someone also had a thing for beer, and sassy quips.

"What was the last thing you ate, Sir?" Sam asked as she ignored him.

"Spring rolls and soy sauce."

"Anything else?" Daniel asked.

"A beer, then I went to bed," Jack said as he eyed the beer Carter had taken from him.

"So," Sam concluded, "whatever happened, happened when you were asleep."

…Night Watch…

Sam and Teal'c had gone home while Daniel told them that he would stay and keep an eye on Jack.

"When you remembered everything that happened to you," Jack began as they sat on the couch. Both of them had a beer since Carter was not there to play den mother, "was it hard to integrate what you knew then with what you know now?"

Daniel rubbed his face as he thought of his response. "No, not really, it was almost the same as absorbing a Quickening. Once I remembered enough of the recent past, things just fell into place."

Jack nodded deep in thought as he sipped his beer. "Ya know, I don't need a babysitter," Jack said as he looked at the older/younger man sitting quietly next to him.

"I didn't need a babysitter last week either," Daniel said quietly after he took a long pull off his beer. "That's what family does for one another. Be there when they need them most."

Jack looked at Daniel, "Is that what we are? Family?"

Daniel looked up at the teen, hazel eyes intense, "Did you expect any less? When warriors go into battle together for 2, 5, 8, 10 years… you can't say there isn't a bond between the four of us."

"I can agree with that," Jack said quietly, surprised at Daniel's words.

"No matter what happens," Daniel said equally as quiet as he laid a hand on Jack's shoulder, "We'll always be family. We'll always look out for one another. That's a rare thing, for one of my kind to find that kind of kinship with others, especially mortals. Even if, for now we step into the rolls of father and son, and later when you get older, the rolls would be reversed."

As dusk fell into night, darkness stole over the house. Daniel stretched to turn the lamp on and the light nearly blinded Jack.

Daniel watched as Jack stared into the lamplight. He recognized a flashback when he saw one.

"Whoa..." Jack said.

"Intense?" Daniel questioned.

Jack nodded.

"What was it?"

"Either the hot and sour soup affected me more than I'd like to admit," Jack said perplexed, "Or I got a visit from the Asgard last night."


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Jack braved riding with Daniel in his jeep as they headed back to Stargate Command. He expected Daniel to drive as recklessly as he ever had. But since remembering who he really was, Daniel may have driven a little fast, but not nearly as recklessly as he had in the recent past. Jack was able to relax with Daniel driving instead of gripping the door in fear of the vehicle flipping.

Once at the SGC, the two men met the other members of their team, Dr. Janet Fraser and General Hammond in the briefing room.

Jack tapped his fingers on the table in impatience. Even though he put on the air of boredom, he was chomping at the bit to find out what was wrong with him and how to fix it.

"None of that makes any sense," Hammond said with a frown as he looked at the teen.

"I've read about UFO abductions, and it does sound similar," Daniel said in confirmation.

Jack looked at Daniel in curiosity, "You read up on UFO abductions?"

Daniel shrugged in embarrassment, "Back when I was looking into reasons for the pyramids."

"This is inconsistent with previous interactions with the Asgard," Teal'c observed.

"Thor mentioned that the Asgard have kept their eye on human development over the years," Sam said.

"But we're allies," Hammond protested, "What would they gain by doing this?" he asked as he indicated the teenaged O'Neill.

"I got nuthin'," Jack shrugged and shook his head. 'When am I gonna wake up?' he asked himself.

"General," Daniel spoke up with a lack of his usual bashfulness, "I'd like to do a little research. See if I can find a pattern."

"Be my guest, Doctor," at that point Daniel tuned out the room and focused on the research ahead. Maybe he could get in touch with a couple of his old friends. See if they had any information about alien abductions. Just leave out a whole hell of a lot of where he had been for the last several years.

Words droned on around Daniel's head, but he heard none of it until Hammond said, "Dismissed."


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

…Touching Base with the Old Crew…

"Damn, man, it's been a LONG time," the voice on the other end of the phone was nearly music to Daniel's ears.

Daniel smiled, "You missed me, brother?" his English accent markedly pronounced in his pleasure at hearing the voice on the other end.

"What have you been up to, man? It was as though you had dropped off the face of the earth," the voice on the other end of the line sounded very glad to hear from him.

"Yeah, I've been out of touch with the real world for a while," Daniel responded with a frown. 'How do I get around this?' he thought to himself. "Actually," he improvised, "I stayed on Holy Ground almost for the whole time I was away. I'm sorry." Well, technically he was on Holy Ground; the base had been blessed by the cleric at its dedication.

"No, man," the other Immortal said, "Don't worry about it. Ya gotta do what ya gotta do to not play the Game. Anyway, what's got a bee in your bonnet that you finally called me?"

"What can you tell me about alien abductions?" Daniel finally asked.

"I've heard that people who claim to have been abducted suffer from terrible flashbacks. Why're You askin' Me about this, Daniel?"

"Come on, Clay, don't play dumb," Daniel said with a smirk.

"Actually, it's Patrick Kiley at the moment," Clay corrected.

Daniel froze as a chill went down his back, "The Senator? Patrick Kiley?"

Jack looked at him, wide eyed from where he sat in a corner of Daniel's office.

Clay laughed, "You say that like it's a bad thing."

"You have no idea," Daniel said with a frown. "I remember when you were on the Human Investigation Team for the Humanadyne Scientific Group."

"Aw hell, Daniel," Clay responded, "That was in the 80's, man, it's been almost twenty years."

"So, you don't have any insight, or contacts?"

"I may be able to get you some info," he said after a long pause as he unlocked the safe under his desk and grabbed a file out of it. "Get in touch with either Mike Turcotte or Lisa Duncan," Clay told him, "they were on a project together a few years back. They may have some information about several abductees here in the states."

"Turcotte and Duncan…" Daniel echoed as he wrote the names down on a tablet.

"So," Daniel said as he changed the subject, "any skirt chasing lately?"

"Daniel…" Clay protested.

"I'm just saying…" the archaeologist teased, "A nice girl like Libby… Another dancer…"

"For the love of Job, Daniel, would ya lay off…" Clay sounded aggravated, "Yer as bad as Aggie."

Daniel laughed, but he sobered when he saw Teal'c enter his office. "Listen, Clay, it was nice touching base with you."

"Yeah," Clay agreed as he sighed and rolled his eyes. A little light ribbing from old friends was tolerated. "It was good hearin' from ya. How'd you get the number anyway?"

"I went to where any respectable Immortal goes to get information… Bernie, of course," Daniel replied.

"Of course, if you know who to go to…" Clay nodded, "Bernie's the man."

"Well, I have to get back to work," Daniel said.

"Get in touch with the old gang," Clay said, "we should get together soon, just to relive the old days. Maybe spar a bit, see how in shape we really are now a days."

Daniel smiled, "That'll be wonderful. Though, I may take on a student within the next few years."

"Bring him along," Clay said with a smile. "I'm sure a little hazing from the old crowd won't be too painful."

"Hah!" Daniel responded as he shook his head. "Go with God, de St. Omer."

"Go with God, Rossal," they then ended their phone call.

By the time Daniel had hung up the phone, Teal'c was at Daniel's computer using a search engine.

"You know how to use that thing, Teal'c?" Daniel asked in surprise.

"I learned while you were away, Daniel Jackson. Do you not use computers in your research?"

Daniel frowned, "Maybe that was back when I was just Jackson. But I'd rather stay as far away from technological doodads as I possibly can. About the only thing I'm willing to do on them is type out documents and use the e-mail, unless I have to do something else like search for a contact on the Watcher's Database. Other than that, it's a glorified paperweight." 

Teal'c looked up at Daniel and frowned, "What are we looking for?"

Daniel shrugged, "Look up abductions that match Jack's story." Daniel looked at the computer screen from behind Teal'c's shoulder.

There were a lot of people that popped up on the search engine. "Can you filter it to see if any match what Jack said… 'four green lights'?"

Teal'c refined the search to include the requested information.

Daniel looked at the screen from over Teal'c shoulder, "That's interesting… the most recent of these reports was taken back nineteen years."

"Indeed."

"Just like Clay said," Daniel said more to himself than to Teal'c. "Eight are here in the States. We should talk to these people in person."

"What would talking with them accomplish?"

"I guess we'll cross that bridge when its burnin'," he said as he asked Teal'c to print the information.


	8. Chapter 7

…Chapter 7…

…More Investigations…

Milfey, Oklahoma

"Why is there a renewed interest in my case after 26 years?" the old man looked at the two in suspicion as he stacked wood behind the old whitewash house that had seen better days.

"All I am able to say is that the United States Air Force has some new information."

"Will it validate my story?" the old man asked.

"It might," Daniel said encouragingly.

"Please, Benjamin Hawkins," Teal'c said, "tell us what happened."

"I was asleep. A light appeared. And it took me," he shrugged as he thought about those events long ago.

"Took you where?" Daniel asked.

"Dunno," Mr. Hawkins replied in a faraway tone of voice. "I was weightless, floating, but… it was dark, cold. I couldn't move even though I was awake."

"What happened after the light?" Daniel asked

"There was these… things… like widgets, or somethin'. Green, glowing balls floatin' around me. When they stopped, I was left alone for a while. I heard a voice tellin' me not ta be afraid, that I was safe. But I was scared…" he eyed the men that were interviewing him about this.

"Did you actually see who was with you, Mr. Hawkins?" Daniel asked gently.

The old man looked at the two young men, he nodded once. Mr. Hawkins grabbed an old, worn out sketch book from a side table and flipped page after page of drawings… mostly of a carnival. He finally flipped to the right page and turned it toward the strangers.

…To See the Boss…

Daniel had gone to General Hammond's office by himself after he and Teal'c had finished their research. With him, he had a few books and a file folder. "Each story was nearly the same as Jack's… they all match except that none of them changed physically due to their abduction: taken while sleeping, floating, paralysis, out of body experience. Their stories sound right out of the X-Files… but they all describe four globes of glowing green. That's too exact to be coincidence."

"They all described the same thing? An Asgard?" Hammond enquired.

Daniel pulled out the drawing Mr. Ben Hawkins had allowed him to keep; it showed the standard little blue alien of Thor's race.

"The Asgard haven't responded to our communication attempts," Hammond told Daniel.

"Well, hopefully… they'll be here soon," Daniel said with a frown as he rose from the chair. "I'm going to check a few more leads," he told the general.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

…Its Finally Come to This…

Daniel half expected Jack to go missing much earlier than this, 'If I were a dying, de-aged Colonel where would I go?' Daniel asked himself as he scanned the corridor. Rushing to the elevator, Daniel hoped he was not too late.

Jack had swiped a key card from one of the guards, and even though he had used the elevator briefly, he did not use it to ascend the mountain. He found his way to the ladder access and climbed his way up and out of the mountain. As he exited the tunnel and closed the lid, Jack felt a heavy hand come down on his shoulder.

Turning, Jack startled to see Daniel standing there with a frown on his face.

Jack took a ready stance, unsure if Daniel was going to rat him out or not.

Daniel rolled his eyes as he put a finger to his lips.

They heard some SFs in the distance and froze.

As the voices faded, Daniel gave a follow me gesture.

Jack shrugged and followed the man.

Once they reached the line of trees near the road Daniel turned to him and gave him several hand signals that meant, "Stay here. Wait. Trust me."

After a long moment, Daniel drove up in his red jeep.

Jack quietly got into the vehicle and buckled the seatbelt.

Daniel drove out of the gates and out past the outskirts of town then parked the red jeep.

They sat there for several long moments. Jack tensed expecting the worse. Daniel resigned to his fate.

"I expected you to go truant much earlier than now," Daniel said quietly.

"Why did you help me?"

"That's what friends do, Jack." Daniel said as he rested his head on the steering wheel. "I hate the idea that you're dying."

"How'd you know I'd be out there?" Jack asked as he changed the subject.

Daniel scoffed, "Are you kidding? If I were in your shoes, I would have done the same thing."

"So, what's the deal here, Daniel?" Jack asked impatiently.

"I'm here to extend the invitation for you to be my student if everything goes well and you wind up not dying," Daniel said quietly, barely above a whisper.

"What the heck would that mean?" Jack asked as he looked at the Immortal like he had two heads. He snorted in amusement and continued, "Reading, writing and arithmetic."


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

… Explain It To Me Slow …

Daniel rolled his eyes as he pulled out his cell phone. "Not unless you want that kind of knowledge. I'm offering you protection from the NID and any other organization that would seek to do you harm just to get to the SGC, Hammond, Sam, you and me. With a new identity that is off the radar, you won't be found easily."

"What would you do if I were a REAL student?" Jack asked in curiosity.

Daniel took a deep breath before he began, "If you were a real student… You'd have intense martial arts and swordsmanship training. The military has nothing on an Immortal's idea of PT. I'd probably leave the SGC and take on a new identity myself. Then, we'd leave the area, probably even the country. I'd also have you visit with a few trusted Immortal friends who would also give you training in their own styles of combat and other skills that I think would benefit you. And, if you wanted life skills and academic knowledge, I'd provide that too. All of your needs would be taken care of: clothes, housing, whatever you would need until you were able to survive on your own." He held up a staying hand as he dialed a number from memory.

"Hello?"

"Hi there," Daniel said in reply.

The other end of the line was silent.

"Hello?" Daniel impatiently asked into the pregnant silence.

"Are you really him?" the voice sounded bittersweet.

"Of course I'm me, would you like me to prove it?"

"Please…"

"You were one of my mentors, Aggie, what do I not know about you that pretty much everyone knows."

"Yes, something that no one knows."

Daniel sighed in exasperation as he rolled his eyes, "History claims you as a slaver and a rapist. But the truth is you're neither. The one young woman you captured was enamored with you and wanted your affections. You captured her in order to woo her away from her dashing debonair suitor. Agamemnon the romantic…"

"Fair enough," the voice said, "only a select few know the truth about those days."

"Yeah," Daniel said reflectively, "those days."

"So, what the heck have you been up to, old son?" Aggie asked, "It seems like you fell off the face of the earth."

"Heh," Daniel laughed and stuck to the story he had told Clayton. "Actually, I've been out of the world a while…"

Jack turned to Daniel in distress.

Daniel continued not even noticing, "After the incident in Paris I went to Holy Ground and stayed there a while."

"A while," Aggie exclaimed, "Seventeen years? Okay… for us, it can be a while. But what's got you in touch with the world again, Bud?"

"I have a new student," Daniel said cryptically, "I need to set him up with papers."

"Have you talked to Bernie?"

"I didn't want to go through the usual channels. Thought you might be able to suggest someone who could take care of it with discretion. I want to keep his name out of the Watchers database."

"I might know a guy," Aggie said thoughtfully.

"Really?" Daniel said as he looked over at Jack.

Jack was frowning at the other man. 'What the hell are you up to?' Jack seemed to be asking him with his glare.

"Yeah, you know him too," Aggie smirked.

"I do?"

"Does the name Geoffrey Bisol ring a bell?"

"Man," Daniel sounded surprised, "This is my week to get in touch with people I haven't seen in forever. What's Geof doing with himself these days?"

"Annoying people mostly," Aggie smiled.

"Like that isn't new," Daniel said with a huff of laughter.

"Anyway, here… let me give you his number," Aggie said as he rattled off a number off the top of his head. "Give him a call… he'll get you the paperwork." 

"Thanks, man," Daniel said, "I owe you."

"Nah," Aggie said, "We're even. Favors are for really big stuff. Go with God, Rossal."

"Go with God, de St. Agnan."

As soon as Daniel hung up his cell and turned back to Jack. "Any more questions?" he asked the de-aged Colonel.

"Beer?" Jack asked hopefully.

"You're not a child," Daniel told him with a frown. "I'm not gonna treat you like one. That being said: I would hope that you would make a responsible judgment call. My suggestion would be one beer every three months."

Jack shrugged. "What about if I wanted to stay here in Colorado? Don't you think you should keep your job?" Jack asked as he looked over at Daniel.

"You'll be more vulnerable because, as you know, I'm away often. You know they're going to want to restrict your access to the Base. But, I could contact one of my friends to move here and help out. And, eventually I will have to leave the SGC before suspicions are raised, unless I want the US government to learn about the existence of Immortals."

"I can take care of myself, Daniel," Jack said with a frown. He sounded like a belligerent teenager.

Daniel smiled, "I heard about that SF outside the 302 class."

"I coulda had him," Jack groused.

"Not with that body," Daniel responded as he looked over the scrawny young body with a critical eye, "not yet anyway."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jack asked as he looked over at Daniel again.

"It means, I was thinking of a modified version of the training," Daniel replied with a slight smirk.

At that moment, Daniel's cell phone chirped. Looking at the ID, he noticed that it was the SGC calling.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

… Back to Reality …

"This is Daniel," he said as he answered the phone.

"Where are you?" General Hammond enquired.

"I'm in my jeep, why?"

"Have you found the Colonel?" Hammond asked him in impatience.

Daniel smirked as a lie came to him, "I found him at a liquor store trying to buy some beer." 

Jack smirked over at Daniel as he listened to the part of the conversation that he could hear. No one needed to know that Daniel had found him right at the tunnel entrance of the base.

"Well, bring him back, there's some new information."

"Yes, I'm on my way," Daniel said then hung up the phone. "We need to get you back to base," Daniel said quietly.

"What? Why?" Jack sounded agitated.

"Don't know," Daniel shrugged as he turned the engine over, "Hammond said there's some new info on your case."

"Did he say what it was?" Jack asked impatiently.

"Nope," Daniel replied shortly, "We're headed there now."

"Look," Daniel said after a long moment of silence, as they started heading back toward the base. "I will tell you this. Whatever happens, I will be there for you, Jack."

"Do you know many Immortals in young bodies?" Jack asked curiously.

"I know a few," Daniel replied quietly, "Most don't last long. They're usually picked off by head hunters at a very young age."

Jack frowned at the idea, but remained quiet.

"But," Daniel continued, "I know two who stay out of the Game and they're much older than you'd think."

"Such as?" Jack asked.

"Well…" Daniel began as he stopped the car once more. "Tobias the Younger is roughly 3500 years old and looks about the age you look now. And, Marus… she's probably about 900 years old and looks even younger, maybe about 12."

"To be eternal children," Jack shook his head in wonder. "That's gotta suck. Imagine never being allowed to buy beer."

"Yeah," Daniel replied quietly as they continued heading to the mountain. "Too young in body to be considered mature. Too young to drive. Too young to copulate."

"I wasn't even gonna go there, Daniel!" Jack protested vehemently.

Daniel looked at Jack with a smirk, "Most wind up begging for the end."

"So," Jack said as they pulled through the security gates. "What does it really mean to be your student?

Daniel eyed the young man with intense hazel eyes as he parked in the parking lot at the base. "It means that you'll survive. Being my student means that I'll keep an eye on you until you're capable of surviving on your own. I'm offering you protection that you shouldn't pass up, Jack." Daniel said with a frown. "But, if a head hunter was to come after me, or if the Watchers found me and realized I'm Immortal, it could be very dangerous for both of us."

"Are you saying that you have people after you, Daniel?" Jack asked as a frown marred his brow.

"No, not at the moment, but some young upstart, trying to make a name for himself might see bookish Dr. Daniel Jackson as an easy target; they'd be surprised, because I'm not an easy target. But still, he might be followed by a Watcher who would recognize me."

Nodding, Jack said, "Your sword collection."

"You know, I didn't even realize that swords had any significance other than that they were sharp, old and looked neat. It was a novelty at the time…" Daniel trailed off in thought.

"So, I'd learn sword fighting?" Jack asked.

"That's crass," Daniel said as they headed toward the underground complex. "Fencing is the more appropriate word. Swordsmanship encompasses more than one style. But, yes, I'd teach you if you were willing to learn."


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

…A Thorn in the Ointment…

They continued speaking about swords as they reached the elevators. Jack and Daniel stopped as they noticed Sam and Teal'c waiting for them. The four got into the elevator together.

Jack pressed the button for the sixteenth floor before he turned to the other members of SG1, "So, what did ya find out?"

"There may not be much time left," Sam said with a frown. She did not want to tell him the truth at the moment; she was actually afraid to tell him.

"Yeah, so," Jack said as he looked at the blonde.

"There's no easy way to tell you this, sir," Sam said with a frown as she fidgeted a little bit.

Jack shrugged and shook his head.

"Well, sir, the Asgard…"

"Fer cryin' out loud, Carter!" Jack cut her off impatiently.

Sam's spine stiffened and she stood at attention instinctively.

Teal'c stepped forward, "You have been cloned."

"What?" Jack snapped as he looked at them.

Daniel echoed with his own shocked tone.

"The Asgard took the real you and made a copy," Sam said with a frown, "an unstable one."

"The real me?" Jack asked as he glared at her.

"You are not the real Jack O'Neill," Teal'c said stoically.

"I'm sorry," Sam said.

"Where's the real me?" Jack said as he looked at them then at Daniel.

Daniel looked as shocked as he felt and shrugged at the young man.

"Well, we hope that with your help, we can find out, "Sam said as she fidgeted again.

…Back in the Briefing Room…

"When Teal'c and I did our research," Daniel began as everyone sat around the conference table. "We figured that there was a seven day gap between abductions. That means tonight is the night."

"This plan sucks," the clone said with a frown. "Its gonna fail."

"The switch is the only chance we have in capturing the culprits and finding the original Jack," Sam said.

"What about the fact that I'm dying?" Jack protested. "You don't care as long as you get the original back?"

"It is unknown if we can stop your body from deteriorating without putting you into stasis," Janet said with a frown.

"Maybe whoever's responsible will be able to fix it," Daniel sounded hopeful.

"Fine give me a gun and I'll make him cooperate," Jack said with a frown.

"We don't even know who it is," Daniel said as he looked at the young Jack. As far as he was concerned, he was not going to abandon the young man once they got his friend back.

"Look," Jack said as he looked at Hammond, "You can't just use me as bait and cast me aside like yesterday's garbage. Your only chance of capturing this guy is by using me." He looked at Hammond with pleading eyes.

"A zat," Hammond conceded.

"Thank you, sir," Jack gave a small smile and sat back in his chair.


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

…Stakeout…

The team had gone to Jack's house for a stakeout and to wait for the alien to replace the clone with the original Jack O'Neill. 

Jack was reading an old issue of Mad Magazine. He lifted up the radio to get in touch with the team, "Carter, you listening?"

"Yes, sir," she responded as she stood outside.

"Space Monkey? Teal'c?" he questioned.

"Yep," Daniel responded, "We're out here too… waiting."

"Do you want to go over the plan again?" Sam asked.

"I don't think I need any further instructions, Carter," Jack said right before the Asgard beam took him to the ship.

When they saw the light flare in the bedroom, the rest of SG1 rushed into the house. They found Jack lying asleep.

It took a few seconds to wake the Colonel.

As he turned to his team, Jack realized they were in his house. "What are you doing here?" he asked in irritation.

…In Orbit Around Earth…

Once the clone figured it out, he beamed SG1 onboard the Asgard ship that was in orbit around Earth.

"See, Carter," Jack's clone said in triumph, "I didn't need any further instructions." He walked over to where SG1 stood and looked up at Colonel O'Neill.

"What the hell is this?" the original snapped as he noticed a teenager who looked like he did when he was about fifteen. 

The teenaged cloned looked the original over with a frown, "Wow, I'm really tall."

"Carter?" Colonel O'Neill said in a demanding tone as he looked over at the Major.

"Colonel O'Neill," she said as she indicated the original, "Meet Colonel O'Neill."

The Colonel looked at the teen, then back at Sam, "What?"


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

… Double Trouble …

"The Asgard over there," Teal'c indicated the tied up alien, "attempted to replace you with a clone. He was unsuccessful."

"How long was I gone?" Jack asked.

"About seven days," Daniel responded.

"Wow," O'Neill replied, and then he turned to the clone, "So you're… me."

"You?" the clone said with a frown. "Yeah, and believe me when I say it's creepy," he indicated himself. "And I'm the damn copy."

Daniel walked over to the alien as he noticed him stirring.

"What is going on?" the Asgard sounded confused.

"Well," Daniel nearly snarled, "I was hoping you could tell us."

"No," the alien said as he shook his head. "This is not right."

"Hey!" Jack snapped as he headed over to the Asgard. "What the hell do you think you're doing? You stole my ass and made a… mini… me."

"Who are you anyway?" Daniel said as he tried to maintain a calm tone to his voice.

"I am Loki," the alien answered.

"That explains it," Daniel said sarcastically.

"Say what?" Jack said as he looked at Daniel. He had not expected that kind of tone in the archaeologist's voice.

"The god of mischief, according to Norse tradition. The Trickster," Daniel said with a frown.

"Why did you take Jack O'Neill?" Teal'c asked as he moved closer to everyone.

"I do not have to answer to you," Loki responded with a flat tone.

"Hey!" Jack snapped, "We just saved your asses from the Replicators. Is this how we're thanked?"

"At least you'll live," the clone said in a depressed tone.

"What?" Jack said as he looked over at the teen.

"Yeah," Daniel said quietly at Jack's side, "Something didn't go right when Loki did what he did to make your mini… you. His body's gonna break down if Loki doesn't make it right."

"I cannot," Loki said with a frown, "The same thing happens to all clones."

"Okay," Jack said, "Why the hell did you do this anyway?"

"I am a former geneticist with the Asgard High Council."

"Former," Daniel said as he glared at the little alien.

"I was removed from my position after they caught me experimenting on humans."

"Like that didn't tell you anything the first time?" Jack snapped.

"I merely did what was necessary to perfect our cloning technology," Loki continued, "Our population cannot withstand duplication much longer."

"How can experimenting on humans change that?" Daniel asked exasperated.

"Your bodies are similar to our original form. I hope to find a way to construct a clone that will contain our superior intellect with you reproductive capabilities. My research thus far has been unsuccessful."

"Superior intellect," the clone snarked, "Is that an oxymoron?"

Jack eyed the teen, "I woulda said that."

The clone smirked at the original.

"I would have eventually been successful if allowed to continue," Loki protested.

"Why come back here after being forbidden?" Teal'c asked with a frown.

"Because I thought he would bridge the gap," Loki said as he looked at O'Neill.

"Me?" both the clone and the original asked simultaneously.

"He was physiologically advanced enough to carry and utilize all the data from the ancient repository of knowledge. That would not be possible for any human one generation ago. He is a significant step forward on your evolutionary path." Loki said.

"You just found this out?" Sam asked as she looked at the colonel and his clone doing a freaky twin thing.

"O'Neill is a legend," Loki said, "I learned about his status at the same time as all Asgard learned of it.

"So, with the war against the Replicators," Daniel deducted, "you thought the others would be too distracted to notice you heading back here."

"And, you thought the opportunity was too good to pass up," the clone extrapolated.

"I am trying to save my people," Loki defended himself.


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

… Making the Impossible Possible …

"Please," the clone said as he looked at the Asgard. "I'm dying, is there something you can do?"

"I cannot correct the problems with your DNA. And I am unable to explain why you did not age as you should have."

"That's bullshit," the clone said in frustration.

"Carter," O'Neill said impatiently. "Call Thor," he said as he picked up one of the jewels on the console and handed it to her.

"Please, do not," Loki protested.

"It's too late, buddy," Daniel said to the alien with a frown.

"You know," the clone said, "I bet Thor will be able to fix whatever's wrong with me." The clone doubled over as he finally felt the beginnings of pain, whereas up until now he had only felt weak.

"You alright?" Daniel asked as he placed a hand on the teen's shoulder.

Jack noticed the byplay between the two but remained silent and kept an eye on them.

"Honestly?" the cloned asked and noticed Daniel's nod. "No," he said as he shook his head.

Thor finally arrived with his apologies.

"Loki, what have you done?" Thor asked as he quickly assessed the situation.

"He's been playin' Initiative behind your back," the clone tattled.

"Initiative?" the original said as he looked over at his clone.

"Yes," the clone said with a frown. "The DRI: you know the government funded project that we're not supposed to know about?"

"You should have known O'Neill's genetic code has anomalies in it that protect him from this sort of thing," Thor scolded.

"Excuse me?" Jack and his clone said simultaneously.

"Somehow, a marker in your DNA prevents attempts at genetic manipulation," Thor explained as he blinked at them.

"The abnormality," Daniel said with a knowing smirk.

"That's why the clone didn't reach maturity," Carter said with realization.

"That is correct," Thor said. He then turned to the other alien, "You will be punished, Loki."

"I apologize for any inconvenience this has caused," Thor said with a frown then looked at the clone. Young Jack did not look well. "The eventual breakdown is the result of Loki's incompetent methods. This is unfortunate."

"There was no need for the clone to survive," Loki said with superiority.

"Thor, buddy," Jack said pleadingly, "is there anything you can do?"

"You wish your clone to live?" Thor asked him, surprised.

The clone looked at the original as the silence stretched.

"You can't just let me die," he protested.

"Come on, Thor," Jack said.

"Are you certain?" Thor still had a surprised look on his face.

"Yeah," Jack said with a nod.

"Very well," Thor said with a slight bow, "I will repair his DNA."

"Thanks," Jack and his clone said at the same time.

"Okay, that has to stop." The original snapped.

The clone looked over at Thor, "Thanks."


	16. Epilogue

Epilogue

…An unknown location in Colorado Springs, early morning…

The clone of Jack O'Neill and Daniel Jackson were jogging on a hiking trail in the mountains.

"You sure this is what you want to do?" Daniel asked him as they rounded the turn of the last leg of the trail.

"I've though about all of my options." Jack replied as he huffed and puffed while Daniel remained unaffected by the exertion. "The Air Force offered to set me up. I even thought about going back to high school and doing it all over again."

"But?" Daniel prompted.

"Well, Jack and I are different. Unfortunately, I'm not him anymore. Which is why I took you up on your offer."

The teacher and student continued to run in silence along the trail for a long time.

"You know, there is a chance that you will run into him sooner or later," Daniel mentioned.

"I know," young Jack said, "It's unavoidable. But it'll be weird."

"Yeah," Daniel agreed, "It would be weird."

"But, with your offer on the table…" Jack said, "It just seemed right. Ya know?"

"Yeah," Daniel said. They continued their jog for a long moment of silence.

"So, when am I going to be spending whatever amount of time with other old people?" Jack asked with a kid like smirk which belied his true age.

Daniel looked at him for a long time before he answered, "I want to make sure you have the basics before I send you to anyone. And, I want you at least up to beginner 'gate traveler level before you go anywhere without me. So it will probably be a year or two."

"Daniel, are you being overprotective?" Jack asked as he looked over at his friend.

Daniel shrugged as they came to a stopping point.

"At least tell me something about any of these old people that you're friends with," Jack said as he almost collapsed into a heap once he stopped.

"Well," Daniel said as he crouched down, took a sip from the bottled water and handed it off to Jack. "There's one guy that I've known for quite a while. I met him back when I was a Gladiator, we were Templars together."

"You were a knight?" Jack asked as he looked Daniel up and down in an assessing manner. He had to redefine his friend from the pacifist that he knew from past experience. "Isn't that a secret society?"

"I was part of the original 9 founders, Jack," Daniel explained, "the secret society part came after we were scattered. Anyway, this guy I'm talking about… at one point, he was Hugh Conte de Champagne. He was in the Watchers with me back in the 80's and I found out that he's still in the Watchers, but a different branch."

"Okay," Jack said as he sipped some more water, "You have the Watchers that watch the Immortals and there are other Watchers?"

Daniel nodded as he sat down on the ground.

"What do they watch?" Jack asked as he sat down next to the older man.

"Other things…" Daniel said cryptically.

"What the hell does that mean?" Jack snapped.

Daniel gave a long suffering sigh; he knew this was going to be a long explanation, "Contrary to popular belief, the Earth did not begin as a paradise…"


End file.
